lloyd holland

During my tour at Guantanamo Bay Cuba, i haven't even been in the FMF a year yet, but being on the fenceline at GTMO you grow up fast. The fenceline could become a combat zone at the drop of a dime. You could be driving down the fenceline at night and see AK-47 fire hitting the fence, or standing guard in an OP and watch defectors climbing the fence while Cuban soilders chase them. Anyone who has ever been on the fenceline know it's tales. Driving my 5 ton down the line one day with a few grunts ...

For the Marines who still survive, we all gave some. For the Marines who perished in battle, they gave all. For the Marine who shed his blood with me like no other, he shall forever be my brother. Some times we may not see eye to eye, but we are still brothers. But in the heat of battle, and we're back to back, no enemy shall come between us, because we are brothers. If one should fall and do not rise again, stand tall beside his gravesite with honor in your eyes. When the taps have played it's ...

In 1979 or 80 my squadron (VMA(AW)533) was on a training deployment to MCAS Yuma Arizona, getting ready for a WESTPAC deployment. Like any det you are expected too work hard and safely, and when you secure for the day you enjoy your free time. One day after we leave our work area and head to the E-club for a couple of cold ones, an old school buddy from back in Va., belly ups to the bar beside me, my boy Boo. We shoot the breeze until someone hollers "last call for alcohol". So we make ...

After graduating from boot camp in 1977, i was just like any young green amphibious monster just unleashed from the hells of Parris Island, all i needed was a hip held 50 cal., enough ammo that would not run out, a box of c-rats and a full canteen and i would have taken the world myself, (yeah right) thats what i thought. After comming home for leave i had to look up some of my old high school friends. Karen and Tara two of my homegirls stopped by in their little green VW bug with a few bottles ...

When i arrived to the airwing from motor-t and the grunts, i found out it was like night and day, from living in tent city to living in aircondition barracks, what luxury i thought, but some places my squadron deployed too like Korea was a tent city. I was given the title of training NCO, NBC NCO, and whatever else NCO in S3 ops. Well i traded my 5-ton truck and M-16 rifle for a ink pen and a typewritter (not by my choice). Anyone who has ever had a desk job, it's just like sitting in the head, ...

Sitting in an airport waiting on his flight home, a young Marine in his dress blues, honor man of his platoon, just out of boot camp was catching up on some reading from his Marine Corps manual. He was caught up in all of the knowledge that he was taken in and drifted off into another world, the world of the Marines. He dreamed of all of the new places and people and the things that he was going to see during his tour of duty. All of a sudden he felt a couple of tugs on each side of his neck that ...

In June of 1977, 10 days after graduating from high school, i was standing on those yellow foot prints at Parris Island. A buddy and i were suppose to have went in on the buddy plan, but he had a situation pop up (a baby boy). Well i found out what Marine Corps boot camp was all about. After making it through 1st, 2nd, and 3rd phase, i was only a few days from graduation. Platoon 2072 was sitting down to one of its last meals as a unit at 2nd battalion chow hall, when a new platoon stumbled through ...

In the beginning was the word, and the word was GOD, and all else was darkness and void and without form. So God created the heaven and earth, he created the sun, the moon, and the stars so that light might pierce the darkness. On the earth God divided the land and the sea, and this he filled with many assorted creatures. The dark salty creatures that inhabited the murkey depths of the oceans, God called sailors and dressed them accordingly, with trousers that looked like bells at the bottom and ...